A Child in the Legion
by NoLionsInTokyo
Summary: Brainy lets no one in his lab, under any circumstances. What happens when he's alone in there, and an accident occurs? Let's just say that the Legion will have to make some big changes due to their youngest member. Hints of LLxSG
1. Chapter 1: How this Whole Mess Started

**A/N:WhooHoo! This is my first fic! Just so everyone knows, Alariah is my OC, so I own him. I would really like reviews on this, I already have chapters 2-5 written for this, but in order to upload more chapters, I would like at least two or three rewiews. Ok, so no more boring Author's Note, I know people don't really read them anyway. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Legion of Superheroes, but I have about a million comics, so its almost like I do. . . oh well. Never have, Never will. Oh! I do own Alariah though! :)**

It was an average day in Legion headquarters, Brainy was in his lab, shooing away anyone who dared to approach. That was one thing that had not changed after his transformation after Dark Victory. Vi was the only one who's presence he accepted. Accepted. Not liked. Maybe.

Apparently, The Ilearian (Alariah) was a slow learner.

"C'mon Brainy! I wanna see what you're making! I also wanna see the look on your face when you mess up and it goes kablooie!" He whined.

"Al, nothing I have made has ever gone 'kablooie' and nothing ever will. Vi, could you please pass the electron manipulator? Thanks." Brainy replied.

"But-"

"No buts!"

Al burst out laughing and Vi, leaving the lab, began to snicker.

"Real mature you two!" Brainy yelled.

Brainy continued to grovel over how he had immature teammates who would laugh at such an annoyingly stupid statement, when his hand slipped, cutting a wire and spilling some chemicals all over his machine and himself.

"Sprock." He muttered.

The machine began smoking and sparking. He looked around frantically for something to stop it, but the problem worsened quicker than he thought. He looked over his shoulder, shocked to see that it was about to blow.

Suddenly; KABLOOIE! The radioactive core of the machine exploded, catching Brainy in the backlash.

"Brainy?" Alariah called outside the lab. No answer. "Brainy?" He tried again. Still no reply. Al took a deep breath. "BRAAAAAINEEEEE!" He screamed. No one answered him.

Al growled. He didn't like to be ignored. Now he was angry. He backed down the hallway, then charged forward, breaking down the door.

Nothing prepared him for what he saw. His eyes widened in fear, surprise, and, in all honesty, a bit of amusement. Brainy's workspace was a big mess, to say the least. There were chemicals splattered all over the walls, machine parts were blown to bits, and on the table was the remains of his project from earlier.

"Looks like it went kablooie," he snickered to himself.

Suddenly, he heard small running footsteps and the swoosh of a door closing.

"Brainy? C'mon, I know you're out here!" Al called. He saw someone dash around the corner. "X'hal." He sighed. "You're really gonna give me a run for my money, aren't ya Brainy?" He followed who he assumed was Brainy around the corner. He heard a door slam shut about halfway down the hall. The only doors in HQ that didn't swoosh open and closed automatically were the storage closets. "Seriously? Hiding in a closet? How cliché can you get?" He opened the closet and froze. He blinked about twenty times to see if his eyes were playing tricks on him.

"D-don't hurt me." The small figure crouched in the closet pleaded. Al still couldn't believe it. Brainy's biological clock had been reversed. He now looked like he was maybe four or five years old, only he was still human.

"SATURN GIIIIIIRL!" Al yelled, causing the small human/Coluan to shrink back, tears brimming in his eyes. Noticing this, Al slapped himself in the face, muttering, "Oh sprocking X'hal, I'm an idiot."

Saturn Girl flew around the corner. "What do you need, Al? I was in the middle of some important business with Lighting Lad."

Al smirked. "Sure you were…" He gestured towards the closet.

Ignoring Al's remark, Saturn Girl turned to the closet Al seemed to think was the problem. Her eyes widened when she saw its occupant.

"Is that… Brainy?" She asked, shocked.

"I dunno, but he sure looks a lot like him." Al said, grinning like a maniac now.

Saturn Girl bent down to Brainy's level of height. Brainy scooted further back into the closet.

"Brainy?" She asked sweetly.

"M-m-my name is B-Brainiac 5." He stuttered.

"Ok, Brainiac 5. Will you please come out?" Saturn Girl asked, as nicely as she could.

He shook his head frantically.

"Why not?" Asked Saturn Girl.

"Be-because there's a scary Ilearian out there and i-if I come out he's gonna delete me!" Brainy stuttered, and softly started crying.

"Oh, no sweetie." Saturn Girl said, as soothingly as possible. "Alariah is my friend and-"

At the mention of Al's name Brainy screamed and scooted even further into the closet.

Saturn Girl gave Al a questioning look.

I'll tell you later. She heard his voice in her head, making use of his telepathy.

But Al, why is he afraid of you? She asked.

I said I'll tell you later! He thought sternly.

Ok, ok fine. Saturn Girl thought, aggravated. Then she broke the link. She continued to try to lure Brainy out of hiding.

"Brainy- I mean, Brainiac 5- why are you afraid of Alariah?" She asked.

"H-he's an Ilearian, a-and he's in charge of all the army stuff a-and Ilearians are partially in charge of Colu, and I left and I wasn't supposed to so now since I don't belong here he's gonna delete me!" Brainy began sobbing loudly.

Alariah was obviously annoyed that someone was yet again afraid of him because of the Ilearian stereotype.

"Ok, first of all, I've never 'deleted' a Coluan before, second, it's rude to stereotype people; not all Ilearians are like that, and third, yes I do run the Ilearian Military, and I fail to see the problem with that!" Alariah yelled that last part angrily.

Brainy whimpered and scooted even further away into the huge closet when Al yelled.

He's the Ilearian General? Saturn Girl thought.

I can hear you. Al thought.

Oh sprock I have to remember to block my thoughts. Saturn Girl mentally chided herself.

"Well, I'm counterproductive, so I'm gonna go darkly brood with Kell-El." Alariah said, partially joking.

"Brainiac 5, the Ilearian is gone, could you please come out now?" Saturn Girl asked for about the hundredth time now.

"No! You're just trying to trick me! He's gonna come back out the moment I do, and then he'll delete me!"

How do I deal with this child? Saturn Girl asked herself. Then she remembered something the older Brainy loves, and this younger Brainy would undoubtedly be curious about it.

"Alright…" Saturn Girl sighed. "I guess I can't give you any hot cocoa then…" she trailed off at the end of her sentence, and the little Brainy stuck his head out of his hiding place, looking up at her curiously.

"What's hot cocoa?" He asked

"Oh that's right! Most Coluans aren't human like you are, so they have no reason to keep it on world." Saturn Girl said, quite pleased that her plan was working.

"What do you mean 'human like me'?" Brainy asked. Then he looked down at himself, and his face broke into a grin. "I'm human! I'm human! They said it was impossible, but they were wrong! I'm free! Woo hoo! I'm human!"

Then he did the last thing that she expected the frightened boy to do. He came out of the closet and started doing a little happy dance, twirling around her. When he realized that she was watching though, he blushed and sat down, embarrassed to have made a fool of himself in front of her.

"Well, now that you're out, why don't we go get that hot cocoa?" Saturn Girl said.

"Ok." Brainy said looking down. Then he looked up at her, as if waiting for permission.

"You don't need my permission, Brainy. We're just walking to the kitchen." She said. Then she offered him her hand, and he hesitantly took it. "Alright, to the kitchen!"

**So what does everyone think? I types it on my phone, and it was super hard to do all the italics and stuff because I didn't have pages (I do now, better late than never). If anyone sees any mistakes, please let me know and I will check the next few chapters for other **

**errors. Thanks! Oh, and if anyone wants to address me personally or something and they don't feel like writing out my whole username, call me Lioness.**


	2. Chapter 2: Hot Cocoa

**A/N: Hello again. Special thanks to neomoon585 for being the first to review! Any little bit is really encouraging! I would like to ask for no flames though, however constructive criticism is welcomed. Here is chapter two! I need ideas, because I am currently on chapter 6, and I have hit the wall. Help! The writer's block must not win!**

**Disclaimer: Don't own LOSH. Sorry to disappoint anyone who wanted more seasons (myself included). However, I do own Alariah and all his weirdness.**

Saturn Girl got out the cocoa mix, milk, and mugs, while Brainy watched curiously. She made enough for two people, giving on to herself and one to Brainy. He took a small sip, and his eyes widened in delight.

"It's really sweet!" He said, gulping down the rest.

"What are you doing in my kitchen?" Timberwolf asked angrily, storming in as soon as he knew someone was in there. He stopped cold. "Ummm…"

Brainy had run behind Saturn Girl, and was now trembling in fear.

"I-is the wolf gonna eat me?" He asked timidly, though he looked adorable with the small 'milk mustache' the hot cocoa had given him.

"Oh, no Brainy. Timberwolf is a nice guy who just looks a bit scary. He's really nice and bakes the best cookies in the known universe!" Saturn Girl reassured him. Brainy began to come out, then they heard someone snicker in the corner.

"Lyle…" Saturn Girl said in an annoyed-mother tone, "you better come out, or Brainy's going to be scared of an invisible monster.

"RAWR!" The corner/Lyle said.

"Ahhhhhh!" Brainy screamed. "What's in the corner?!"

"Not what, who." The corner/Lyle said. "Hi." He became visible.

Brainy stared at him, trying to make sense of what just happened. "A-are you another Ilearian?" He asked, his voice wavering.

"Nah, just Al is, and he's a bit stuck-up if you ask me, so I'm perfectly fine being human." Lyle replied. He got the look from Saturn Girl when he mentioned the Ilearian's name. Brainy retreated behind her once again.

And, as if he had been waiting for the moment, Al walked into the room arguing with Kell over something seemingly pointless.

"Yeah, well I think that's stupid and weird, and Brainy would totally agree with me if-" Kell stopped short upon seeing the small version of Brainy. "Who did this?!" He yelled. Kell loved to yell, and was always looking for an excuse to be angry, and Brainy had been working on making his flight ring more stable after Cham had sabotaged it. He had an excuse to be angry and he was gonna yell about it.

"Kell, calm down, it was just a lab accident." Saturn girl said, just quiet enough for Brainy not to hear.

"Is that another Ilearian?" Asked Brainy, clearly spooked.

"No, just a class 'A' jerk." Replied Saturn Girl. "Ok since I don't want you to freak out every time you meet someone new, I'm going to call everyone into the lounge."

She went into the lounge and called over the intercom, "All Legionnaires currently in the building, if you could please report to the lounge it would be greatly appreciated."

Soon all the Legionnaires had arrived in the lounge, speculating about why Saturn Girl had called them. She rarely ever called impromptu meetings.

"Ok, Saturn Girl, what do you need?" Cosmic Boy asked, annoyed that someone else had called a meeting without first checking with him. After all, he was the leader.

_Nobody mention that this is the second time you've "met" Brainy._ Saturn Girl thought.

_Ok. _

_Second time?_

_Sure. _

_No prob. _

_Huh? _

Were some of the responses she got.

_One at a time!_ She mentally screamed.

Sorry. Was heard about twenty times, so it sounded like a huge echo.

"Ok," she said, out loud this time. "Everyone, this is Brainy." She lifted him up and sat him on the table.

"… hi." Was all he said, then he jumped of the table and hid behind Saturn Girl.

Cosmic Boy looked like a fish out of water. He was totally unprepared for Brainy being turned into a little kid.

"So, Brainy," he said trying to keep his composure, "when did you get here?"

Brainy ducked under the table, obviously uncomfortable with the situation.

"Brainy, are you going to answer Cosmic Boy?" Saturn Girl asked

"MY NAME IS BRAINIAC 5!" He shouted, surprising all the Legionnaires.

"Ok, sure, but can we call you Brainy as, like, a nickname?" Lightning Lad asked.

Brainy thought it over, then nodded shyly.

"Can you answer Cosmic Boy then?" Asked Saturn Girl again.

Brainy shrugged. This puzzled all of them. Was he saying he didn't know when he got there, or didn't know if he could answer him.

"What does," Cosmic Boy repeated the shrugging motion, "mean?"

"I don't know when I got here, but I'm glad I'm not on Colu anymore. Please don't make me go back!" Brainy said. He was really scared of being sent to his home world.

"Hey, it's ok, we won't make you go back if you don't want to." Cosmic Boy said. Then he noticed that Brainy had begun crying.

"R-really?" He sniffed.

"We promise." Superman said. This was the first time that he had spoken. Brainy's attention turned to the Teen of Steel, his eyes widening.

"I-is that Superman?" Brainy asked in amazement.

"Umm…yes?" Said Clark, obviously confused.

Brainy stared at him for a moment, then looked at Saturn Girl, lifting his arms signaling that he wanted to be held. Saturn Girl lifted him up and sat him on her lap. He whispered something to her so the other Legionnaires couldn't hear him. Saturn Girl's eyes widened. Whatever Brainy had told or asked her was obviously absurd. Kell, Superman, Alariah, and Timberwolf all frowned, (Except Al. He smirked strangely being the weirdo he is. XD) seeing as they had super hearing and probably heard what Brainy had said.

"Brainy you don't have to be afraid of anyone here, we're your family." Saturn Girl said softly, but the other Legionnaires had heard. So Brainy was afraid of Superman. That makes five Legionnaires that he had shown immediate fear of. And he'd only been formally introduced to six of them. Great.

They went around the lounge, the Legionnaires that Brainy didn't already know introducing themselves. Brainy seemed to like Cos okay, was immediately suspicious of Lightning Lad, hid from Colossal Boy, Sun Boy, and Nemesis Kid (Lighting Lad had commented on how the kid had good instincts, earning a playful whack from Saturn Girl), blushed at Vi and Dream Girl's introductions, and was utterly shocked when Phantom Girl phased through the wall to see what was up.

"Awwwww!" She squealed. "Brainy looks sooooooo cute!"

Brainy immediately ran out of the room.

Lightning Lad sighed. "Anyone up for a game of tag?"

**R&amp;R please! If you are the first to review the chapter, I will thank you in an Author's Note! **


	3. Chapter 3: Chocolate Chips and Birthdays

**A/N: christlover, this chapter is for you! Thanks for reviewing!**

**Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own LOSH. I really wish I did. Maybe if I sing that Disney song… yeah, probably not. I do own Alariah, DC isn't crazy enough to create a nut like him. I am. **

"C'mon Brainy! Where are you?" Lightning Lad yelled. They had been searching for the boy for over an hour. It had become more of hide-and-seek, and less of tag.

"Saturn Girl, do you sense his brain waves?" Asked Cosmic Boy.

"No." She replied. She was obviously worried about the boy. She was the only one he had trusted so far.

"Guys! I found him!" Yelled Kell. They ran over to him to see Brainy curled up in a corner sleeping, his little thumb in his mouth.

"Awwwww…" said Phantom Girl. "He looks so cute sleeping like that!"

Saturn Girl lifted him up, brought him to his room, and tucked him in. "Goodnight Brainy." She said.

"Goodnight mother." A small, sleepy voice said from the bed.

Saturn Girl walked into the lounge. She had just finished her part of the night shift and she was more than ready to get some shut-eye. She found Phantom Girl in the lounge, sipping some coffee.

"Couldn't sleep?" Asked Saturn Girl.

"Yeah. It's been a long, crazy day." She replied.

Saturn Girl smiled. "For you and me both."

"Hey, Saturn Girl?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you know why Brainy seems to be scared of everything?"

"It probably has something to do with his upbringing on Colu."

"Oh."

They sat in silence for a minute before Saturn Girl spoke.

"Phantom Girl?"

"Yeah?"

"I think Brainy thinks I'm his mom."

"What?!"

"Shhh! Don't wake everyone!"

"Sorry. What makes you think that?"

"When I got him to his room I tucked him in and told him goodnight and he replied with 'goodnight mother'." She looked worried, she wasn't ready to be a mother.

"You'll do fine. Besides, when he first joined the Legion you were sort of like a mom for him. You taught him how to tolerate the others, especially Lightning Lad." Phantom Girl snickered at that last part, and Saturn Girl stifled a laugh.

"I told him we were his family. I didn't think he'd take it that literally though." Saturn Girl sighed. She didn't know what to do.

"Well, sleep on it. In the morning if he still thinks that you're his mom, you can decide to either tell him you're not or explain it to him that you will be his mom, but you're not his actual mother." Phantom Girl said.

"Do you think he'll understand that?" Saturn Girl asked.

"The kid has a twelfth level intelligence, I think he'll be fine." Phantom Girl replied. "See ya in the morning."

"Yeah. See ya." Saturn Girl said, then drowsily walked to her room, and flopped down on her bed.

Brainy woke up to unfamiliar surroundings in an unfamiliar building on an unfamiliar world. It took him a minute to realize where he was, and he almost panicked, then he remembered: he woke up in a strange lab, and heard someone banging on the door. No, banging down the door. He saw that it was an Ilearian so he made a run for it, but the Ilearian found him. He didn't know why he was surprised, it was inevitable. Then a blonde lady came and tried to calm him down, but the Ilearian wouldn't leave and he just got more and more scared. Finally he came out, met her friends, and went to sleep in the hallway. He didn't know how he ended up in this room, but there was a bathroom attached to it, so he decided to go get ready for the day.

He found some new clothes outside the closet, so he grabbed one of the outfits and went into the bathroom. When he had finished washing up and getting dressed, he realized he was hungry. He found the room with the words 'SATURN GIRL' painted across the door, and wondered if he should knock or wait outside the door. He didn't have to wonder about this for long though, because the Legionnaire called Triplicate Girl came around the corner.

"Hey, little guy. You hungry?" She asked.

He nodded wordlessly. She kinda scared him. He didn't understand how her people on Carrg could split into three, it went against the laws of science.

"Alright, let's go get you something to eat!" She bent down to lift him up, but he backed away, so she offered her hand to him and, after a moment's hesitation, he took it.

"How do you do it?" He asked.

"Do what?" She asked.

"Split into more people. How do you do it?" He asked.

"I don't really know, but I guess there's a gene in Carrgites that allows them to rapidly multiply themselves. So if I had to guess I think it would be a genetic thing. Does that answer your question?" She said.

"Sorta." Brainy said.

"Mmmm, breakfast smells good!" She said.

"Who makes breakfast?" Brainy asked.

"Sometimes Al, sometimes Timberwolf, and sometimes they do it together. It's Saturday, so they're probably doing it together." She said.

"B-but then I have to see the Ilearian again! I'm not going in there!" Brainy screamed.

The Trips sighed. How were they supposed to get Brainy to eat if he was afraid of the cooks? "Well, we can't make you eat, but Saturn Girl won't be happy if you don't eat."

Brainy looked at her, grumbled, "fine…" and followed her to the kitchen.

"Rise and shine campers! Get 'em while they're hot!" Al yelled, flipping the pancakes.

"We're going camping?" Brainy asked, confused.

"No, it's an old Earth expression. It's just when you live with friends, and you wanna call them something else. At least, that's how I use it. I also do it to annoy Kell. It's so easy to get on his nerves…" Alariah trailed off, and began talking about nothing in particular. Brainy got the impression that Al was smart, it was just really hard for him to focus. Typical Ilearian.

"Can I have pancakes?" Asked Brainy.

"Sure, what kind?" Al responded.

Brainy's eyes bugged. There are different kinds of pancakes?! What kind of crazy world was Earth? Or at least he assumed it was Earth, since the Ilearian seemed so fond of using expressions from that world.

"Are we on Earth?" Brainy asked.

"Yup. The melting pot of the Galaxy!" Al replied, completely oblivious to the boy's shock. "So, what kind of pancakes do you want?" Al said, repeating his earlier question.

"Ummmm…" Brainy had absolutely no idea.

"Here!" Al said, placing two with melted brown blobs on them on his plate. Brainy gave him a puzzled look.

"They're chocolate chip. Made out of the same stuff as hot cocoa."

"Oh." Brainy smiled. He knew what that tasted like. He took them to the table, and realized he wasn't tall enough to reach the table unless he stood on a chair on his tippy-toes. He went over to the lounge area, grabbed two pillows, one per hand, and brought them back to put on the chair to sit on. Wen he sat down again, he realized that he was now about six inches higher than he had been without the pillows. He smiled at his own ingenuity.

"You ok, or do you need sit on my lap?" Saturn Girl asked, coming up behind him. He shook his head and picked up a pancake, eating it like a sandwich. Saturn Girl suppressed a giggle. "You're supposed to cut them and eat them with a fork, silly." She said.

"Oh." Brainy blushed, embarrassed once again for making a fool of himself. He looked up at her helplessly.

"Would you like me to cut them for you? You're probably are too young to use a knife anyway." Saturn Girl said.

Brainy nodded sheepishly. She cut them up for him, then said, "You might want to cover your ears, it's normally right about now that Al has a kitchen accident."

Just then, Al ran out of the kitchen screaming at the top of his lungs in his native language.

"Xc'est! Makkar def ronn maffálak! X'hal deign Shb'hull! Kull'rek't makkdur! Nof del rhodf!" Al screamed, trying to keep his hair, which had gone up in flames, from completely burning off.

Timberwolf ran in with a fire extinguisher, and sprayed Al until he looked like the abominable snowman.

Al blew the white foam out of his face, looking extremely annoyed.

"TINYA!" He yelled, "I need a haircut!"

Superman burst out laughing. Phantom Girl had been trying to get him to let her cut his hair for years, since it had been almost three feet long before. If there was one thing you'd never do, it was mess with an Ilearian's hair without their permission, especially if the Ilearian was a warrior, and Al had been a warrior practically since birth.

"WHOO HOO!" She yelled, dashing into the room, and dashing right back out, dragging Al with her. They could hear those two bickering all the way down the hallway.

"But it'd look soooo cool cut short!"

"Tinya…"

"I'm serious!"

"Tinya…!"

"Ooh! We could even make it all spiky and scary-looking! You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Tinya!"

They listened to Al whine and Phantom Girl (Tinya) try to convince him to let her cut his hair short.

"I'm gonna want to see this!" Lightning Lad said, and followed them down the hall.

Brainy smiled at Saturn Girl. "I'm not afraid of the Ilearian anymore."

"Really?" She asked, genuinely shocked.

"Nope. He's not scary, just silly." Brainy replied.

"That's one way of putting it." Saturn Girl mumbled.

"I like pancakes!" Brainy declared. "Can I have more?" He looked at her hopefully.

Saturn Girl smiled. "Ok, you can have a few more."

"Yay!" He shouted.

Saturn Girl finally decided to ask the question that had been bugging her since they found Brainy in this condition.

"Brainy, how old are you?" She asked.

"I'll be four years old in exactly one week!" He replied, happily munching on more pancakes.

She smiled. Saturn Girl doubted that he had ever had a proper birthday celebration before, and the Legionnaires were going to give him one!

**So, I hope everyone is pleased with this chapter. If anyone has spare time and is a good artist, I would like to see what others think Alariah looks like, and I would love a picture of little Brainy. Anyone who draws for me will get a chapter dedication, and if I really like it I may let you request a fic or oneshot. I can't draw as well as I'd like to. If anyone knows the actual spelling for Triplicate Girl's homeworld, please enlighten me, because I just guessed. Also, suggestions for chapters and more fics are welcome and encouraged! Thanks to the few who have bothered to review, I really appreciate it! Little Brainy gives my reviewers hugs!**


	4. Chapter 4: Meet the Parents

**A/N ****PLEASE READ****: Thank you to those who have been reviewing! It makes me super happy! I am now asking for suggestions, because I am almost out of ideas and the story would be done after only 8 chapters! I just need randomness to get my imagination going again! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own LOSH. It was my birthday not too long ago, maybe DC could give it to me as a belated birthday gift? I know, I know, it's never gonna happen. I do own Alariah, because he is crazy and awesome and way too childish for his age. **

Brainy was out in the lounge playing with one of the three Triplicate Girls, while the other two, along with the rest of the Legionnaires, were in the Meeting Room listening to Saturn Girl.

"I asked Brainy how old he is this morning, and he said he'd be four in a week. I doubt Colu celebrates birthdays the same way most other worlds do, so I want to throw him a little party." She began.

"Ok, but in case you haven't noticed, he's extremely curious, and it would probably be hard to hide the plans for an entire party from him." Cosmic Boy said. "And who's gonna tell Al and Phantom Girl about this? She's still trying to get Al to let her cut his hair short!" Cosmic Boy began ranting about how some of his teammates argued over the most absurd things, but Saturn Girl gave him a small mental jolt to make him be quiet.

"I've already told them. I'm a telepath, remember? And as for hiding it from him, we could plan it in small bits, and since Trips can divide herself he'll always have a playmate if we're on a mission or we need everyone to plan for some reason." She reasoned.

"Alright…" Cosmic Boy said. He wasn't too keen on the idea of having a four-year-old's birthday party at HQ, but it was like Saturn Girl had said. He probably never had a party before. It was the least they could do.

"Are you _done_ yet?" Asked a small, muffled voice from outside the door.

Saturn Girl smiled. Brainy was out there trying to figure out when they would be done, and the Orange Triplicate Girl was trying to get him away from the door.

"Almost, Brainy. Please be patient." She said.

"I'm only three, it isn't logical for me to be patient." Brainy replied.

Everyone in the room laughed at that. Brainy pulled the I'm-only-a-kid card on them.

"So are you done?" He asked hopefully.

"Yes, sweetie we're done." Saturn Girl said, exiting the room.

"Yay! Can we play a game now?" Brainy asked.

"Well, most of us are busy at the moment, but maybe later." Said Saturn Girl.

"But Mooommeeeeee!" Whined Brainy.

Everyone stopped and stared at him. Did he just call Saturn Girl mommy?

"What?" Asked Saturn Girl, astonished.

"You said you're my family, and I want you to be the mommy." Said Brainy. He didn't get why everyone was staring at him. "Did I do something wrong?" He asked, fear finding its way into his voice.

"No, no! We just didn't know that's how you saw things." Said Saturn Girl.

"Y-you don't want to be my mommy?" Asked Brainy, his lip quivering.

"Oh, I never said that!" Replied Saturn Girl. "Brainy, I'm not your biological mom, but if you want me to be your mother I can, at least for the time being."

"Really?" Brainy asked.

"Really." Saturn Girl said In a reassuring tone. Brainy jumped into her arms and hugged her as tight as his small arms could.

"I have a _real _mommy now." Brainy said, to no one in particular.

"What do you mean a 'real' mommy?" Asked Saturn Girl.

"On Colu, I never met my mother because the government took me from her when I was too little to remember her, so I pretented I had a mommy when the workers who had to watch me weren't in the room." Brainy said. He looked a little ashamed of himself.

Maybe this was why when he first joined the Legion that the only one he would listen to was Saturn Girl. She was like the mother figure of the Legion.

"So…" began Phantom Girl. "If Saturn Girl is the mommy, then who's the daddy?"

"Lightning Lad." Brainy answered, without missing a beat.

Lightning Lad looked like he was gonna be sick. Brainy had just said that he was the dad. _Brainy_ said _he_ was the _dad_. He stood there with his mouth open wide. Did he hear that right? Did Brainy _really_ claim that he was the dad?

"Did… did he just say that _I'm_ the dad? Lightning Lad asked, out loud this time.

"Yes, Garth." Saturn Girl said, who had also heard his repetitive thoughts.

"Is that bad?" Asked Brainy.

"Umm… maybe?… not really…" Lightning Lad said. He was being very indecisive.

"Brainy looked at the floor. "You don't have to be the dad if you don't want to."

Lightning lad was about to say something, but the alarm went off.

"What is it?" Asked Bouncing Boy.

"A search and destroy mission. The president of the United Planets thinks that her men have found the Scavenger hideout and she wants us to check it out and destroy it if it is. Phantom Girl, Bouncing Boy, Star Boy, Colossal Boy, Kell, and Timberwolf, I want you on this one. Shrinking Violet, I want you at C.O.M.P.U.T.O coordinating their attacks and strategies." Cosmic Boy ordered.

"Yes, sir!" They all mockingly saluted him.

"Hey…!" Cosmic Boy said.

They all left for the ship, leaving everyone else to have dinner alone.

"They're back! They're back!" Brainy yelled as he ran into the lounge the next morning.

He ran out of the room again and up in front of Phantom Girl. He put his arms up, signaling he wanted to be carried. Phantom Girl was more than happy to oblige.

"What's that?" He asked, pointing to a beautiful red gemstone on a chain around her neck.

"Oh, Puppy got that for our six month anniversary. I can't believe we've been dating that long!" She said, giving Timberwolf a dreamy look.

"Puppy?" Asked Brainy.

"Her nickname for me." Timberwolf said, blushing.

Superman came up to inspect it, because he was mildly interested. However, as soon as he got within two feet of it, his mood seemed to drastically change. The change was so sudden that he winced in pain, and Alariah and Saturn Girl flinched.

"Bah, so what? It's just a shiny rock." Superman scoffed.

Phantom Girl had put Brainy down and defended her Puppy. "Well, I never asked your opinion, and I thought it was very sweet when Puppy gave it to me, so you can keep your comments to yourself!"

Superman rolled his eyes at her.

As Superman left the room, Brainy went up to him, "Superman, do you want to-" he began, but Superman cut him off and pushed him back and down.

"Not now, runt! Go play with some whiners your own age!" He yelled.

And with that Brainy began to cry. Alariah went over to him, expecting Brainy to push him away, but instead Brainy clung to him and sobbed into Al's long black cloak.

"Wh-why d-did Superman h-hurt me?" He stammered, still sobbing.

Al looked like he knew the answer, but he simply said, "I don't know," and tried to sooth the child.

_Is that true?_ Saturn Girl asked him telepathically.

_Nope. I know exactly why he acted that way_. Al replied.

_Then why?_ Saturn Girl wondered.

_Tell you later_. He thought hastily.

"Ok," Cosmic Boy said. "We need to keep Superman from ruining anything, because he's obviously not acting like himself."

Al raised his hand enthusiastically, like a third grader ready to answer a math problem.

Cosmic Boy sighed. "Yes, Al?"

"Do I have permission to use unnecessary brute force?" He asked, trying (and failing) to keep a straight face.

"Sure," Cosmic Boy sighed again. He was going to regret that decision.

Al dashed off in a black and silver blur before Cosmic Boy could change his mind.

"Alright Legionnaires, let's get that super-fool!" Yelled Lightning Lad.

**PLEASE READ THIS TOO!****: R&amp;R people! Your reviews are what motivate me! :) If anyone wants to know more about Al, let me know. I will post a oneshot about his past, but only if people actually want to know. **


	5. Chapter 5: Flaming Napkins

**A/N: Here is chapter 5! Sorry if anyone caught my mishap with posting it before!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own LOSH. I do own Alariah, he's a total nut. :)**

Superman was in the kitchen, making all the napkins set on fire. A very strange thing to do indeed. Then he heard a loud battle cry.

"Tek'rekkt'lah!" Al screamed, his normally icy blue eyes glowing red.

He rammed into Superman, and pushed him up against the wall. The two fought in the kitchen, then, realizing that Timberwolf would be livid if they completely broke his kitchen, slowly moved the battle out of there and into the sim room. Al then shifted his form a bit, the normally crystalline white spikes on the end of his long black reptilian tail shifting to a glowing green, his claws doing the same. Superman began to weaken, and once Al scratched him, he fell to the ground unconscious.

Cosmic Boy then ordered them to detain Superman, and called a meeting.

OoO

"Al, that was completely unnecessary!"

"You said I could!"

"I did not!"

"Did too! Check the security tapes!"

"Fine, maybe I did…"

"Told ya."

"But still! Did you have to use Kryptonite?"

"Um, yeah duh. It's the only thing that will hurt him."

"Nuh-uh!"

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah! Magic hurts him too genius!"

"Well I didn't think you'd want me using Dark Magic in HQ!"

Cosmic Boy and Alariah argued over this stuff for almost an hour, and Phantom Girl had had enough. She walked up to Al and pulled down his hood, which he had been wearing up since he let her cut his hair.

Al gave an over dramatic gasp. "Nooooo!" He yelled, pulling his hood back up so it almost completely covered his face.

Cosmic Boy stared open mouthed. "I cannot believe that you cut his hair that short. I can't believe he let you!"

"Careful Cos, I still have the pictures of you as a freshman. Your costume is sooooo dorky!" Phantom Girl said.

"She has shamed me!" Al screamed, being his usual theatrical self. "Zek kull'ruun deemx kruthur! Mur'kepp'kt sen brugal!"

He ranted in Ilearian for a little while longer, wildly gesturing with his hands, then turned to his teammates and smiled, his hood falling back down.

"Ok, I'm done now." He said.

"Thank you." Cosmic Boy said. "Now, what caused Superman's mood to change so suddenly?"

"The necklace." Al said absentmindedly.

"My necklace?" Phantom Girl asked, shocked.

"Yes." He replied.

"Why?" Everyone chorused.

"It was Red Kryptonite. It has strange effects on any Kryptonian. While green K simply weakens them, the red K causes them to act completely unlike themselves. In Superman's case, instead of being an overly kind farm boy, he was a rude, envious jock who apparently has a vendetta against napkins." Al looked pleased that he knew something they didn't.

"Will he be ok when he wakes up?" Brainy asked, concerned.

"He'll be fine in a couple hours." Al said.

OoO

Superman woke up in a room with no windows or visible doors and red solar light radiating throughout the room. Right away he knew something had happened. His memory was completely blank. What did he do? He knew this was one of the holding cells at Legion HQ. Legion members were only put in here if they were extremely violent.

"Guys?" He yelled. Nobody answered. "Anyone there?" Still no answer. He backed up to the wall and sunk to the floor. He put his head in his hands, obviously upset. What had he done wrong?

OoO

It had been over three hours since Superman had woken up in the room that Al came in.

"I need to do a telepathic mind scan. See if you're stable." Was all he said.

"Alright, but what did I do?" He asked

"Red Kryptonite. Caused you to be a major jerk. You burned all the napkins." Al smirked.

Superman couldn't help but laugh at that.

"Looks like you're ok now, but Phantom Girl's necklace is a no-no for you, got it mister?" Al said teasingly.

"Ha. Ok Al." Superman said. Then he noticed something. "Your hair is really short. Did Tinya do it?"

"Yeah. She has shamed me." Al smirked again. "Brainy will be glad you're ok."

OoO

It was lunchtime the next day for the Legion, and Superman still felt like an idiot. He hurt Brainy when he was a little three-year-old. That's not what superheroes were supposed to do. He didn't know how to apologize. He felt a tug on his cape. Looks like there's no time like the present.

Brainy sat there and stared at the floor for a minute. Then he spoke so quietly that it was a wonder Superman heard him, even with his super hearing.

"Why did you push me? I thought the Legion was family." Brainy asked timidly. He still wouldn't look Superman in the eye.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." Was all he could say.

"Then why?" Brainy couldn't understand what the red K had done to Superman.

Superman sighed. He didn't know how to explain something to this child that he barely understood himself. "I don't know Brainy. Maybe Al or Saturn Girl can explain it."

Brainy looked at him, a feeling of defeat clearly written all over his face. He then looked up at Superman and did the last thing anyone would've expected of the child. They thought he would yell, or try to hurt him back, but instead Brainy hugged him.

"I'm happy that we have the good Superman back." Brainy said. "The other one had bad manners and was mean."

Superman couldn't help but laugh at that. The child was happy that he had good manners again. Figures.

Al walked in and stood in the middle of the room, and took a deep breath. Brainy crouched and covered his ears.

"IT'S SNOWING OUTSIDE! SNOWBALL FIIIIIIIIGHT!" Al yelled. Most of the Legionnaires rolled their eyes. Al insisted upon doing this old twenty-first century pastime every year. Superman was the only one who didn't think it was ridiculous.

"What's that?" A clueless Brainy asked.

Al smirked. "If anyone says no this year I will curse you a thousand times over. We _will_ teach Brainy the joys of the snowball fight!"

**Reviews are appreciated! So are ideas!**


	6. Chapter 6: How do You Play?

**A/N: Hello my lovely readers! Chapter 6! Happiness and rainbows!**

**Disclaimer: LOSH isn't mine. I wish it was. Alariah, on the other hand, is, so nobody ca use him unless I think they'll do a good job with him and they have my permission. :)**

Brainy looked around cluelessly. He had no idea what was going on. Some Legionnaires ran for cover, others had evil smirks clearly displayed across their faces. This scared him.

"What is a snowball fight?" Brainy asked hesitantly.

"It is the greatest form of competition ever created by humanoid kind!" Al screamed.

"A friendly competition!" Lightning Lad added quickly. He didn't want little Brainy to get the wrong idea.

"How do you play?" Brainy asked.

"You throw snow in people's faces!" Al said, as happy as can be.

Lightning Lad rolled his eyes. Al just liked the throwing part. He didn't care for the preparations.

"You also have to pick teams and build a small fort for protection. It sounds kinda pointless, but it's fun." Kell said. Everyone looked at him blankly.

"What?! I thought it sounded pointless the first time Al made me play, but I actually had fun!"

"Shocking…" Phantom Girl whispered.

"Hey! Just because I don't _like_ to have fun doesn't mean it's impossible!" Kell said indignantly.

The Legionnaires teased Kell a little bit more about how the impossible had been accomplished, and what next? And will this, that, and the other impossible things be accomplished?

"HEY!" Brainy yelled. The Legionnaires were surprised that his little lungs could make such a loud noise. "I wanna do the snowball fight now please!"

The others laughed at this. Older Brainy would've looked for any excuse to not play. Younger Brainy wanted to play by any means necessary.

"Ok, so Cos and I are captains?" Lightning Lad asked. That's how it usually was.

"And whichever team gets Al can't choose Superman, and vise versa, right?" Cosmic Boy asked.

"Correct." Replied Phantom Girl.

"Ok then, Cos can choose first." Lightning Lad said.

"I'd like Cham." Cosmic Boy said.

"Saturn Girl." Lightning Lad countered.

"Umm… Kell." Cos said.

"Does he count as Superman?" Lightning Lad asked.

"No!" Kell yelled.

"Fine, just asking, you are his future-clone thingamawhatzer." (Thing-uh-ma-what-zer)

"It's your turn Garth."

"Oh! Umm, Al?"

Alariah smiled at that. Nobody was really sure if he'd yell 'NO!' or be perfectly fine with the team he was chosen for. He honestly didn't really care, he just did it to annoy them sometimes. "Sure." He said.

"I want Brainy!" Cosmic Boy yelled.

"Yay!" Brainy said. He wanted an excuse to throw something at Lightning Lad without getting in trouble.

The rest of the teams were chosen, and then they made their snow forts. Al just complained about why it was necessary to do this, he never understood why you need a fort if you're just throwing stuff at each other.

"But WHY?!" He yelled.

"BECAUSE I SAID SO!" Lightning Lad screeched, sick of Al's complaining.

Brainy found all of this very amusing.

Then it began: The Great Snowball War!

**Yeah, it's short. Lots of drama in the next chapter though. I have an idea for another fic, but I need a title for it. It's gonna be an AU ending to Dark Victory and Brainy's return. Please post ideas in the reviews! I will give you credit for the title in an Author's note if I use it!**


	7. Chapter 7: The Great Snowball War!

**A/N: Here is the snowball fight! I noticed that some people wanted more Lyle in the story, so next chapter he becomes a major character. Christlover, you could probably guess how, because I decided to use your idea. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own LOSH. Still wish I did. I do own Alariah, he's amazing. Also, there are some hints to his back story in the next few chapters.**

"WHOO HOO!" Al yelled. "Time to throw stuff!"

Kell rolled his eyes. "Is the only thing you care about throwing stuff?"

"No, I also care about pancakes, little Brainy, ice cream, and Nyfalia." He said. (Nyfalia is his battle cruiser.)

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Kell asked.

"Bat-dad?" Al asked. (Al is from the past, live with it. :) I will post his back story, I just need inspiration.)

"No! The Legion, you idiot!" Kell yelled angrily.

"Oh yeah! It's hard for me to keep track sometimes. I mean, after you've been around as long as I have everything sorta gets jumbled up." Al said, unfazed by the death stare Kell was giving him.

'Splosh!'

"Hey! We haven't even started yet!" Kell yelled. Al had hit him with a snowball, and they were at a close range.

"So? I like throwing stuff." Al replied.

They began throwing snowballs at each other, not really caring about the teams that they had left behind. And the best part was that they enjoyed every moment of it, even Kell.

OoO

'Splosh!' A snowball hit Lighting Lad in the face.

"Yeah! In your face!" Brainy yelled.

Lighting Lad's response was a snowball thrown at him, but it missed by a long shot.

"You can't throw! You can't throw!" Brainy taunted.

The snowball fight had been raging for the better part of an hour and a half. Lots of Legionnaires were getting sick if it.

"Grrr…" Lighting Lad had had enough of little Brainy hitting him, then dodging his shots with ease. Garth is waaaay too competitive.

Then, without warning, Lighting Lad shot a lighting bolt at Brainy. It hit spot on. It wasn't enough to hurt him, just knock him over. Then Lighting Lad realized that he got too competitive with a three-year-old.

"Oh no." He mumbled.

The Legionnaires stood there dumbstruck. Did their eyes deceive them? Did Garth just shoot at Brainy?

Then Brainy began to cry. "I don't want a mean daddy!" He yelled. "Lighting Lad can't be the daddy anymore!" He sobbed. Saturn Girl came over to comfort him.

"Well, if I'm not the daddy then who is?" Lighting Lad asked, alarmed. He wanted to be the daddy. It meant that he could lovingly tease Brainy without getting threatened. That, and he got to spend more time with 'mommy'.

"Superman! He's nicer than you are!" Brainy continued sobbing loudly. Superman looked dumbstruck. He didn't want to be the daddy. Sure, he was fond of little Brainy, but Superman was pretty sure he didn't qualify to be a parent yet.

"But I wanna be the dad! And how is burning the napkins nicer?" Lighting Lad protested.

"Why don't we all just take a break from the snowball fight for now?" Saturn Girl said. It was more of a command than a question.

"Nice going Lighting Dad." Phantom Girl said as they entered HQ.

OoO

Lighting Dad— erm, Lad— spent the rest of the dad trying to apologize to Brainy, but he kept running up to Superman saying, "He's the dad! He's the dad!" He wouldn't listen to anything Garth had to say.

Lighting Lad didn't know what to do. He got different advice from all the Legionnaires.

"So?" Kell said, always sosympathetic.

"I don't know! It's been years since I've had to raise a family!" Al yelled. He didn't want to revisit his thirties. (Al is approximately a millennium old, but looks like he's 21. Told ya he acted too young for his age.)

"Just give it time." Saturn Girl said. Her advice was probably the most sensible.

"I thought he would've forgiven you by now. He did with me." Superman said, puzzled by that fact. It annoyed Lighting Lad too.

"I know." He said through gritted teeth.

"Well, for all we know he has forgiven you, he just won't admit it. The human mind is a strange thing." Lyle said. He was working with Vi on fixing the lab and finding a way to make Brainy normal again.

That only confused Garth.

_Oh well_. He thought. _It's not like it will be this way forever._

It was getting late. Garth went off to his room to get ready for bed. He was surprised to find little Brainy sitting outside his door.

"E-everyone else is busy, and I want a bedtime story." He said. "Will you read me one?" Brainy looked up at Lightning Lad with hopeful eyes.

"Oh, alright." Lightning lad said. He took Brainy back to his room and sat in the bed with him.

"Once upon a time…"

**Thanks to those who have reviewed! I got a random spoof of inspiration for the next chapter by combining two ideas/requests!**

**Garth=Ligthning Lad **

**I realized that in the show they never use their real names. **


	8. Chapter 8: The Playmate

**A/N: Hello again! Thank you to christlover and Green Sprout, I took the ideas/ requests that you posted and combined them for this chapter! Enter: Little Lyle! :D**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own LOSH. I still do own Alariah. :)**

"Ummm, Saturn Girl, could you please come to the lab?" Shrinking Violet's voice was heard over the Legion comm link. She sounded pretty shaken up.

"Of course Violet. Be right there." She replied. Saturn Girl flew there as fast as she could. Then she stopped in her tracks upon arrival.

"Vi, what happened?" She asked.

"Well, Lyle and I were trying to figure out what went wrong and caused Brainy to de-age, and when he touched some of the wires he was shocked, this weird energy glowed all around him, and he ended up like this." Vi explained.

"Well, one thing's for sure, Brainy will be happy to have a playmate." Saturn Girl said, looking at a de-aged Lyle sprawled out on the floor.

OoO

Saturn Girl was not expecting Lyle's reaction to being in a strange place. She expected it to be similar to Brainy's. She was wrong.

"Whoah! What's this place?!" Little Lyle yelled in excitement.

"Um, this is the headquarters of the Legion of Superheroes." Saturn Girl replied hesitantly.

"Cool! Why am I here?" He asked.

"Lyle, you live here." Saturn Girl responded.

"Whoo hoo!" Lyle yelled. "I live with superheroes!"

"X'hal! Be quiet!" Al yelled. He had odd sleep patterns. The Legionnaires blamed it on his childhood.

"Why is the wall talking?" Lyle asked.

"That's Al. He's on the other side of the wall silly." Vi said, laughing her signature laugh.

"Lyle, how old are you?" Saturn Girl asked.

"I'm four an' a half!" Lyle said proudly.

"There's someone else around your age that we'd like you to meet." Saturn Girl said.

OoO

"Pleeeeeease?" Brainy begged outside Al's door. Al hadn't been shushing Lyle, he'd been shushing Brainy.

"X'hal, no! I'm tired! I don't want to play 'Bug Kell Until He Shoots Lasers at Us'!" He replied, annoyed. That was Al's favorite game, so if he didn't want to play he was pretty tired.

"But why?" Brainy whined.

"X'hal child! If you keep this up I won't get any sleep! Ask the others what I'm like when I'm tired! Go bug Kell by yourself! Pelt Garth with snowballs! Mess with Cos until his brain falls out, I don't care! Just leave me alone! I'M TIRED!" Al yelled.

"Fine!" Brainy yelled, and left.

OoO

Brainy walked into the Lounge in a huff. It was honestly really adorable to see a almost four-year-old this annoyed.

He looked up, and saw little Lyle holding Saturn Girl's hand.

"No! She's my mommy! You can't have her!" Brainy yelled.

He charged at Lyle trying to imitate Al's battle cry.

"Brainy stop!" Saturn Girl yelled. "I'm not Lyle's mommy." She said. "He's going to be staying with us for a while, and since your about the same age we thought that you two might get along well. You'll have a playmate that isn't too busy to play with you."

Brainy thought this over for a while. "Ok," he said, "but you're not his mommy." He stated.

Saturn Girl chuckled. "Alright, I'm not his mommy."

"And Lightning Dad isn't his daddy." Brainy said firmly.

"Lightning who?" Saturn Girl asked. She wasn't sure she heard him right.

"Lightning Dad!" Brainy said happily. Then he grabbed his new friend's had and said, "C'mon! I'll show you all the stuff! It's really neat!"

Saturn Girl smiled and went off to find Lightning Dad.

OoO

"Garth?" Saturn Girl called outside his room.

"Come on in Imra!" He replied.

"I think that Brainy has forgiven you." She told him.

"Yeah, I figured." He replied.

"How?" She asked.

"I read him his bedtime story last night, and he mumbled 'goodnight daddy' as I was tucking him in. What makes you think he did? You didn't read his mind, did you?" He asked, concerned.

"No." She chuckled. "He calls you 'Lightning Dad' now." She said, trying to suppress her giggles.

"I'm Lightning Dad!" He said happily.

Saturn Girl laughed. "Yes, well our little Brainy has a playmate now, so be nice."

Lightning Dad's eyes widened.

"What?!"

**For those who want to know Al's backstory, I have begun writing it, it just is like a tie-in thing with another fic I am writing, so it wont be posted for a while. That, and it's not finished yet. Oh! Also, Little Lyle has a big box next chapter and I need help figuring out what's in it. Leave your ideas in the comments!**

**Reviews are appreciated!**


	9. Chapter 9: Copy Cat!

**A/N: I've been ready to post this for so long! Let me know what you think!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own LOSH. I do own Al, but I don't think he's in this chapter.**

Brainy and Lyle walked up behind Lighting Dad. He was sporting a deep scowl. He hadn't had his morning coffee yet.

Brainy and Lyle plopped down in the two chairs on either side of him, and did their best to imitate his scowl.

Lightning Dad got up to grab his coffee. Brainy and Lyle both got glasses of chocolate milk. Lightning Dad sipped his coffee. Brainy and Lyle sipped their milk. Lightning Dad walked down to the monitor room. Brainy and Lyle followed.

By now Lightning Dad had noticed that they were up to something. He figured that he'd just ignore it and maybe they would stop.

It was quite early in the morning, and Lightning Dad was still a bit out of it, otherwise he would've noticed little Lyle sooner. _This must be the 'playmate' Saturn Girl was talking about._ He thought._ Great. _

He walked into the monitor room, and said hello to Bouncing Boy. Brainy and Lyle did the same.

"Ahahahahahahaha!" Bouncing Boy burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Lightning Dad asked. Then he heard two little echoes behind him.

"What's so funny?" Brainy copied.

"What's so funny?" Lyle questioned.

_Oh no._ Lightning Dad thought.

"They were copying everyone last night, but they couldn't find you to copy. I guess they just decided that they would do it now." Bouncing Boy explained.

"Great." Lightning Dad said sarcastically.

"Great!" Two jovial little voices copied behind him.

Lightning Dad face-palmed. Brainy and Lyle did the same.

Bouncing Boy rolled his eyes. "C'mon you two, Let's leave Lightning Dad alone for now." He said as he ushered the two boys out of the room.

"Can we do it to Cosmic Boy now?" Brainy asked hopefully.

"Sure! Have at it!" Lightning Dad said.

The two little ones ran out of the room, searching for their next victim.

"Bad idea, Garth." Bouncing Boy said.

"So? I can't wait for Cos to run out of his office screaming. Besides, they're just kids, he won't hurt 'em." Lightning Dad said. "And if he does, he'll have to answer to daddy."

Bouncing Boy smiled at that. Garth had become a little more protective of Brainy ever since he read him that story. Apparently Garth didn't want little Brainy to mistrust him again.

"You really are like a dad to him, you know. He idolizes you." Bouncing Boy said, referring to Brainy.

"Ha, yeah. Supes has gotta be jealous." Lightning Dad said, smirking.

The two shared a good laugh over that, then began talking about whatever crossed their minds. About a half an hour later, they heard a door slam at the end of the hallway.

"Why won't it end?!" Cosmic Boy yelled. He was running frantically down the hall.

"Why won't it end?!" Two little voices screamed joyfully, as Brainy and Lyle ran after Cos.

Bouncing Boy and Lightning

Dad waited until they were out of earshot, then burst out laughing.

OoO

Brainy and Lyle were in the lounge with Superman, the Trips, and Kell. The two little ones were building a puzzle, Kell was flipping channels, the Trips were playing three-way chess, and Superman was reading.

C.O.M.P.U.T.O. began to blink, signaling there was an incoming message. Superman got up to accept it, and was surprised to see the Coluan Hive-Mind Mistress.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Brainy screamed. "Lightning Dad! Make the bad lady go away!" He started shaking as he called out for anyone to help him.

"It's okay," little Lyle said. "She's not really here. And even if she was, Al and Kell and Superman and Lightning Dad and Cosmic Brownie would keep you safe."

Kell and the Trips looked at each other. Lyle had called the Legion leader Cosmic _Brownie_. That was pretty funny.

"Good thing Cos wasn't in the room." Kell mumbled.

Superman ignored all of this. "Hello, ma'am. How may we help you?"

"We had heard of Brainiac 5's recent, ah, issues, if you will, and wanted to warn you of his endless curiosity and antics." She said, sounding somewhat afraid, which is strange for someone who claims to have no emotions.

"Thank you, ma'am, we appreciate it." Superman said, then cut off the communication.

"That was weird." Purple Trip said.

"Yeah, she sounded really nervous, not at all like the arrogant robo-lady she's been every other time we've talked to her." White Trip added.

"Maybe Brainy was a trouble maker for them because they took him from his family?" Orange Trip suggested.

Kell shrugged.

"Instead of guessing you could ask him!" Little Lyle whispered loudly.

Brainy had been completely absorbed in his puzzle. "Ask me what?" He asked, now fully paying attention.

"Ummm…you know what, this sounds like a job for Kell." Purple Trip said.

"Agreed!" The other two said as they re-merged.

"What?!" Kell asked, astonished.

"You heard us! Ask him!" Trips said as she flew out of the room.

"Well?" Brainy prompted Kell.

Kell decided to play dumb. "Well what?"

Brainy gave him a don't-give-me-that-sprock look. Superman had to keep from laughing, because he looked just like the older Brainy did when someone did something stupid around him.

"Well?! What are you supposed to ask me?!" A frustrated Brainy said.

"Umm… did you cause lots of trouble on Colu?" Kell asked uncertainly.

"Yep!" Brainy said proudly.

"Ok, that's done." Kell said as he made for the door, but Superman grabbed his shoulder to keep him from leaving.

"Why?" Clark asked.

"They took me from my family, I feel like it was justified!" Brainy stated.

Superman couldn't help but laugh at that. "Ok, I guess it was."

Lyle was bored, so he ran out of the room. He had a way to make things more interesting around here.

"Wait! Come back!" Brainy yelled after him. When Lyle didn't return Brainy pouted. Then he fell back on the floor and let out a long, dramatic sigh.

Superman rolled his eyes. "I think someone's been spending a bit too much time with Al and Phantom Girl."

"Why? I like them. They're fun, and they don't tell me to go away when they're busy unless it's really important." Brainy said.

Lyle ran back into the room with a big box.

"Yay!" Brainy said when he saw that Lyle had returned. Then he saw the box.

"What's in the box?"

**OK, I'm taking a tally. Tell me if you like sushi or not in the reviews, also please leave a review. No new chapters without reviews people! I promise the sushi thing will make more sense in the next few chapters.**


	10. Chapter 10: Lois Lane and Unicorn Barf

**A/N: Horray! Chapter 10 is finally posted! This chapter was beta'd by ****EveningInHornersCorners. They did a great job on all the grammar and stuff, so this chapter is dedicated to them. They do not watch Legion of Superheroes, so any errors in those facts and all are completely my fault. Now, all that's left is the disclaimer and then we will know what's in the box!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own LOSH. I only own Al and the plotline. **

"What's in the box?" Brainy asked eagerly.

Lyle opened the box to reveal stacks of ancient Earth comic books, and two bags of… something. They were made of black fabric and looked fancy. They were tied shut.

Brainy instantly grabbed a Superman comic book and opened it to a page where there was a _very_ detailed image of Superman making out with Lois Lane.

Brainy's jaw dropped, Lyle snickered, and Superman was speechless. When the younger boys had recovered, they looked up at Superman and smirked.

"Superman has a girlfriend!" Brainy said, singing the last part. He and Lyle started laughing hysterically.

Just then Lightning Dad walked past the door.

"Lightning Dad! Look!" Brainy yelled, holding up the comic book for him to see.

Lightning Dad stared at the picture, took one look at Superman's bewildered expression, then glanced backat the comic book, and burst out laughing. Then he came up and grabbed the book, called all Legionnaires to the meeting room, and ran off with Superman not far behind, trying to dissuade him from carrying out his evil plan.

OoO

The older Legionnaires had been in the meeting room for the better part of ten minutes, and Brainy and Lyle were getting bored.

"What's in the bags?" Brainy asked.

"Unicorn barf." Lyle answered matter-of-factly.

"Nuh-uh!"

"Yeah-huh!"

"Prove it!"

Lylethrust his hand into one of the bags and came out with a fistful of stuff. Then he threw it at Brainy.

"Agh!" Brainy screamed, trying to keep it out of his eyes.

"Hey…" he exclaimed, as he watched the shiny particles float to the ground. "This isn't barf, it's glitter!"

"That's what unicorn barf is, stupid!" Lyle retorted.

"I'm not stupid!" Brainy yelled.

"Prove it!" Lyle shouted.

"I have a twelfth-level intellect!" Brainy screamed.

Lyle just stared at him. After a while, he spoke, awed at his friend's statement. "Does that mean you're like a super mega-genius?"

"Yep!" Brainy said proudly.

"Well if you're so smart why can't you think of a way to get the others out to play with us?" Lyle asked, a challenging edge to his voice.

"Who says I don't have a plan?" Brainy asked indignantly.

"Do you?"

"Yep!"

"What is it?!" Lyle asked impatiently.

Brainy smirked. "It involves lots and lots of glitter…"

OoO

"Seriously! Who isn't thrilled by the fact that Clarkie here eventually got a woman?!" Garth asked.

"Lightning Dad, we get it that you think this is funny, just please wrap this up so we can leave!" An exasperated Cosmic Boy sighed.

"Fine, fine. But before you go-"

Lightning Dad never got to finish his sentence. For at that moment, lots and lots of glitter shot out through the air vents, showering the Legionnaires in unicorn barf!

"What the-?!" Lightning Dad yelled.

"Oh no!" Al yelled. "Unicorn barf!"

"What?!" Was heard from several Legionnaires.

Eventually Brainy and Lyle came in and laughed at the bewildered expressions of the Legionnaires.

"All the unicorns in the world threw up on you!" they yelled, collapsing into more fits of laughter.

"Alright you two, that's enough. Besides, it's dinner time." Lightning Dad said in a fatherly manner.

Brainy and Lyle cheered. They loved dinner. It was when Puppy and Al always cooked their best. They went off the kitchen to see what the chefs had prepared for today.

**Here's the part where I ask for suggestions! Brainy's birthday will be in the next few chapters so I need suggestions for gifts! Leave the gift you want him to get and the Legionnaire that you want to give it to him in the reviews. Also, please leave a review. I have I deas for a few other fics, but I need weird Coluan names for some of the characters, so leave some of those too! Finally, I am now a registered beta reader, so if anyone is posting any fics and needs a beta, contact me! I will beta as long as they meet the requirements on my beta profile. So long people! See ya next chapter!**


	11. Chapter 11: The Trouble With Sushi

**I'm back! I decided that I wanted to wait until I got thirty reviews to post again. This chapter is for Green Sprout, since they were that thirtieth review! Thanks so much! I love it when I get a review, it makes me happy to know people appreciate my writing. Al's backstory will be up soon, I finally made some headway on it! On to the story!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own LOSH, I own Al, he is mine! ^_^**

"Well I don't wanna make that!" Al screamed.

"I've already got all the stuff out for it!" Timberwolf yelled.

The two of them had been arguing over what to make for dinner for a while, and the Legionnaires were hungry.

"Can we just compromise and get sushi or Japanese takeout or something?!" Brainy and Lyle yelled.

"Is that what you wanna do?" Lightning Dad asked.

"Yes!" They yelled joyfully.

"Alright, c'mon." Lightning Dad said. They went out the door and headed for downtown.

OoO

It turns out that Brainy had only been outside four other times in his life, and he was only aware of three.

"You went outside for the snowball fight." Lightning Dad said.

"Oh. Then why was outside white? I thought it was supposed to be green." Brainy asked.

"Snow is like frozen rain. The little ice crystals look white in color, so outside looks white." Lightning Dad answered to the best of his ability.

"Ok." Brainy said. That seemed to satisfy him.

Lightning Dad was worried, though. What kind of three-year-old has only been outside four times in his life?

"Brainy?" Lightning Dad asked.

"What?" Brainy replied.

"Why did the Coluans only let you outside three times?" Lightning Dad said.

"Coluans value knowledge above anything. Even normal children spend only a day or two a month outside. I spent less time outside because I'm the Brainiac Child and I need to be perfect, only speak when spoken to, always be researching or inventing, never show disrespect for my world, and only spend one day a year outside. I wasn't very good at it." Brainy said sadly.

"Hey, you're a kid. Nobody can expect you to be perfect. Besides, we all like you just how you are." Lightning Dad reassured him.

"Yay!" Brainy shouted, and hugged Lightning Dad.

Lightning Dad could never recall the Coluan being happier, before or after Dark Victory.

OoO

Brainy and Lyle were completely mesmerized by the fancy Sushi Palace. There were so many different kinds! Eventually they just got a bunch of miscellaneous types, enough for all the Legionnaires. Then they went to a Thai restaurant and ordered just about everything on the menu.

"Everything smells so good!" Brainy exclaimed.

"And it looks really yummy!" Lyle added.

The boys were trying to get Lightning Dad to let them have some before they got home.

"No." Lightning Dad said.

"Please?" They asked.

"No." Lightning Dad replied.

"Please?" They added the puppy dog face.

"No." Lightning Dad stuck to his guns.

"Pleeeeeeeease?" Brainy and Lyle begged.

"Alright! Alright! Here!" Lightning Dad finally caved, and handed them some spring rolls.

"Yay!" They cheered, and bit into the rolls. Brainy smiled in delight.

"There's nothing like this on Colu!" He said through a mouthful.

Lightning Dad laughed. "Colu doesn't have a Thailand." He said.

"Tie Land?" Brainy asked, confused.

"No, Thailand. It's the country that the recipes for this food originated in." Lightning Dad explained.

"Hooray for Thailand!" Brainy said.

Lightning Dad laughed. "Yeah, hooray for Thailand!" He said.

OoO

The Legionnaires were waiting in the lounge for them when they got home.

"Hey guys." Lightning Dad said. "Why don't we eat in the kitchen?" He asked.

"Because Al and Timberwolf are having a food fight in there." Kell said.

"Well, that's a good reason." Lightning Dad said, kind of shocked, but he kept that to himself.

Somehow Brainy noticed. "It's not like it's a big surprise. I can't believe that it didn't happen before now." He said.

The Legionnaires just stared at him.

"What?" He asked.

"How did you know what I was feeling?" Lightning Dad asked.

"What do you mean?" Brainy asked. "The expression on your face made it obvious."

Lightning Dad decided to dismiss it as the boy's overactive mind working too hard.

"Ok, everyone! Sushi and Thai food! Help yourselves!" Lightning Dad announced.

Brainy and Lyle loaded their plates full of sushi and spring rolls. Then they noticed all the noodles and added those too. Brainy noticed a green sauce for the sushi and decided to take some.

They sat down at the table on either side of Lightning Dad. He beamed. He loved the little versions of Brainy and Lyle. They looked up to him and trusted him. Also, Brainy had decided that he was the dad. He didn't notice what was on Brainy's plate until it was too late.

Brainy picked up a piece of sushi (a spicy tuna roll :D) and dipped it into the green stuff. (Wasabi, uh oh!) Then he plopped the whole thing in his mouth. His eyes widened.

"Aaaahhhhh! It's too hot!" He screamed.

Lightning Dad looked around frantically for one of the little relief packets that sushi restaurants were now required by law to include in case something like this happened. (It's the future, ok people?!) He almost freaked out since he couldn't find one right away, then realized panicking wouldn't help Brainy, who had begun crying.

"Lightning Dad!" Phantom Girl yelled, tossing him one of the packets.

He poured the powdery stuff into a glass of water and gently forced some into Brainy's mouth.

It took effect almost immediately, and Brainy stopped screaming. He was still crying, so Lightning Dad wrapped him up in a bear hug.

"It's ok, you don't have to finish it if you don't want to." He said.

After about five more minutes of Lightning Dad attempting to soothe him, Brainy calmed down. He turned back to his food and saw the spring rolls, and the sushi crisis was forgotten. He happily munched on the spring rolls and Thai noodles.

It was getting pretty late, and the next day was the day before Brainy's birthday. Lightning Dad realized that he still had to get him something, as did most of the other Legionnaires.

"Alright, after dinner why don't you two get ready for bed?" Lightning Dad told Brainy and Lyle.

"Awwww!" They whined.

Al decided he wasn't up for a fight between them and Garth. They'd had enough of those the past few nights.

"You're kids. You need your sleep. End of discussion." He said.

Brainy and Lyle looked at him with puppy dog eyes.

"I'm immune to that tactic." He said plainly.

Brainy and Lyle huffed off to their rooms to get ready for bed.

**Okay, the sushi tally. I have two people who said they like sushi, one person who said they didn't, and one person who had no idea. So, sushi may reappear later in the story. :) Don't forget to leave a review! If you do, I am still looking for Coluan names, they will be used in a story called Legion Of Thieves that I am writing and possibly in Galactic Hope. Caio for now!**


	12. Chapter 12: Lyle Wants a Rocket

**A/N: Hooray! Another chapter! I have nothing to say! RAWR!**

**Disclaimer: Me not owny LOSH, me owny Al. ^_^**

* * *

**Words in quotes and parentheses and italics are whispered.**

"Lightning Daaaaaad!" The boys yelled from their respective rooms. "Will you come tuck us in?" They asked.

Lightning Dad sighed and headed for their rooms. Being a dad was hard, especially since he was only twenty! At least he had Saturn Girl to back him up.

"I'm coming!" He replied. He walked into Brainy's room first, planted a little kiss on his forehead, and said "Goodnight, sleep tight."

Brainy then pointed out that sleeping tight was illogical. "How can someone sleep in a tight manner, and would the opposite be sleeping loose?" He asked.

"Go to sleep, smarty pants." Lightning Dad replied affectionately, then he pulled up the covers and left the room, not completely closing the door, because on the first night the Legionnaires figured out that Brainy didn't like to feel trapped and alone. Apparently closing a door at night made him feel that way.

Lightning Dad then went into Lyle's room and repeated the process, only without the comment on 'sleeping loose' and closing his door all the way. That's the way Lyle liked it.

Lightning Dad then ran into the kitchen. "Guys, we have one day before Brainy's birthday and I haven't gotten him anything yet!" He yelled.

His statement was met with panicked looks from about two thirds of the Legionnaires in the room. Looks like they were last minute shoppers too.

"Ok, who has bought a gift." Cosmic Boy asked. About four people raised their hands.

"Great." He mumbled. "Ok, we can go shopping in shifts, only three or four people at a time. And no, Trips does not count as three people." He quickly added.

The Legionnaires split into groups and set times. Then the first group set out. It consisted of Lightning Dad, Superman, and Phantom Girl. They had an hour and a half to find a gift for Brainy before they had to return so the next group would go.

"So where should we go first?" Phantom Girl asked.

"When in doubt, head to the toys!" Superman cheered. The group headed in that direction.

* * *

"What about this?" Superman asked, holding up a white stuffed animal space monkey.

"Awwww!" Phantom Girl squealed. "I don't think he has a stuffed animal, so that would be perfect! I mean, I still sleep with mine." She added that last part kind of sheepishly.

Phantom Girl had found one of those music boxes that is clear so you can see how all the parts work. She knew that little Brainy would find all the gears fascinating and that the noise would drive Cos up a wall. Two great outcomes for the price of one!

Lightning Dad had yet to find a gift and their time was almost up. He decided that what he wanted to do for Brainy was not something he could wrap in a box, so he went to find the others.

"We can go now. I know what I'm gonna do." He told them.

Phantom Girl looked at him kind of funny, but when he said nothing else she shrugged and headed towards the checkout.

* * *

The next group to go out was Kell, Trips, and Shrinking Violet.

"What are you suppose to buy a hyper little Coluan anyway?" Kell asked.

"Oh, c'mon Kellie! Think of your childhood! Surely there was something that you loved to play with!" Trips said, dividing herself to cover more ground.

Kell folded his arms and looked at her. "First, don't call me 'Kellie', and second, I grew up being told I had to destroy Imperiex. I didn't have much time to play."

Purple Trip pouted. "Poor Kellie, never to know the joys of action figures and stuffed animals." White Trip said sarcastically.

Kell rolled his eyes and headed off to the toys section. Triplicate Girl had mentioned action figures, so he figured he would go look for whatever those were. About five minutes later he found a set of Justice League figurines and figured that it was close enough. He picked up the box and went off to find Trips and Vi.

Vi had gone to the section of the store that had all the costumes. She giggled as she grabbed a Superman cape to go with a shirt she found earlier. She could barely control her laughter as she ran off to meet Kell and Trips.

Trips had gone off to the grocery section of the store. She was looking for hot cocoa. She found a variety pack with three different kinds, already divided into their own little bags so they wouldn't have to measure out the right amount. The different flavors were peppermint, caramel cocoa, and milk chocolate. She smiled, and went off to meet up with Kell and Vi.

"Ready?" Vi asked as Trips approached her and Kell.

"Yep!" She said, proudly displaying her hot cocoa.

The three headed to the checkout and then back to Legion HQ.

* * *

Next were Alariah, Bouncing Boy, and Chameleon Boy. Alariah insisted that they change into civilian clothes before leaving, not that it was hard to recognize him as an Ilearian and Cham as a Durlan. Bouncing Boy kept making cracks about Al looked like an evil elf and Cham looked like an orange cream-sicle.

"Seriously, Al! You look more like an elf out of uniform than in uniform, (even if you are a creepy evil looking elf…), and Cham, I'm sorry but you really look like an orange cream-sicle."

In response to that, Cham morphed his hand to look like a popsicle.

"You're an oversized bouncy ball." Al stated bluntly once he had had enough.

Bouncing Boy opened his mouth to retort, but finding nothing to say he closed it again sheepishly. Al smirked, satisfied with the outcome.

Once they arrived at the store, Al waked off in one direction without saying a word, leaving the others completely on their own.

"I swear that guy can act like a six year old sometimes and other times he is exactly like Kell." Cham said. Bouncing Boy just shrugged.

"So… what do you think Brainy would like? Cham asked.

"I don't know, but I'm going to see if there are some of the ancient Justice League cartoons in the holo-vid department. I loved cartoons as a kid, so I figured that's something that I can't go wrong with." Bouncing Boy said, heading off toward said department.

Cham looked in the directions that his friends had gone and couldn't help but feel abandoned. He had no idea what kids liked, on Durla he would amuse himself by changing form again and again. He had been wandering around aimlessly, and found himself in the home decor department. Cham rolled his eyes and was about to leave, when he noticed a bright blob of color at the end of one of the isles. A lava lamp! He grabbed a purple one off the shelf and headed towards the checkout.

Alariah knew exactly what he was going to get Brainy. Coluans loved making things, and at Brainy's current age he didn't think chemicals and power tools were a good idea. He walked into the toy department and grabbed the biggest box of assorted Legos there was. He smiled, and thought that he might play with these with Brainy. Legos had been one of his favorite toys when he arrived on Earth.

Thank X'hal they're still around. He thought, as he headed to the checkout.

"You two have gifts, yes?" Alariah asked as he approached Cham and Bouncing Boy at the exit.

"Yep, let's go." Cham said. "Oh, and thanks for abandoning me back there, guys. You're real friends." He added sarcastically.

"We try." Al responded, earning a stifled laugh from Bouncing Boy. They returned to HQ to get some rest. Al decided to sleep on the floor of the lounge instead of in his own room in his bed. When asked why, he sighed dramatically and said,

"It's too faaaaaaaar!"

* * *

By the next day almost all the other Legionnaires had gotten their gifts for little Brainy. Only Cosmic Boy and Saturn Girl were left. They were going to bring Lyle with them to pick out something for Brainy too.

"Can I get a rocket ship?" Lyle asked excitedly.

Saturn Girl chuckled to herself. "No, sweetie. We're here to get Brainy a gift since tomorrow is his birthday."

"Oh." Lyle said, looking crestfallen.

"Lyle, I'm sure that Brainy will share with you." Saturn Girl assured him.

"Okay." Lyle replied. "What am I supposed to get him?" He asked.

"Something that you think he will like." Saturn Girl responded.

"Like a rocket ship?" Lyle asked hopefully.

Saturn Girl shook her head and rolled her eyes, laughing the whole time.

They walked into the store and Lyle's eyes widened. "This is the biggest store I been in ever!" He said enthusiastically. He ran straight for the toys. Saturn Girl and Cosmic Boy looked at each other and sighed.

Cos looked helpless. "And let the games begin…"

* * *

**Thanks for reading and please review. I have no reviews for the most recent chapters on Galactic Hope and Backstory and I will not post more until I do. Also, look! I figured out the linebreaks. . . ^_^ RAWR!**


	13. Chapter 13: Don't Take Lyle Shopping

**This chapter is Lyle-centric because it was fun to write it that way. Posts from me may be more frequent now because my school lets us use laptops for the year! Yay!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned LOSH there would be a third season with Lyle in it and this would most likely take place at some point in it. Does that answer this repetitive question?**

* * *

"Lyle? Where are you?!" Cosmic Boy yelled. He heard someone giggling in one of the last aisles. He went to have a look, but didn't see anyone.

_What if Lyle could still turn invisible_?! He thought in horror.

However, his fear was short lived. He looked up to see Lyle perched up on top of the shelves. Cosmic Boy's jaw dropped. For a minute he forgot about his flight ring. When he finally came to his senses, Cos sighed and flew up to the shelf Lyle was on.

"Alright Lyle. This isn't how you behave in a store. You need to come down." He said sternly.

Lyle's lower lip began quivering. Cos realized that he sounded harsher than he had meant to.

"Are you m-mad at me?" Lyle asked sadly.

Cosmic Boy sighed. There was no way he could win this.

"A little. It's against the rules to climb on the shelves. Let's get down now, okay?" Cos said, as nicely as he could muster.

"O-okay." Lyle said, sniffing. He then looked down and realized he had no idea how he got up there, much less how to get down. Cos was still flying next to him, so Lyle simply held up his arms hopefully. Cosmic Boy sighed and picked him up. The kid wasn't too heavy, it was just kind of embarrassing for a Legionnaire to have to play daddy in public. Maybe Lightning Dad should've come with them instead.

Just then, Saturn Girl came around the corner and saw Cos bringing Lyle down.

"Oh! You found him! Thank goodness!" She said, relieved.

"Heh, yeah." Cos laughed nervously. He almost made Lyle cry. He was just hoping that Lyle didn't say anything.

"Mommy, Mr. Cosmic Boy almost made me cry." Lyle said sadly.

Saturn Girl shot Cosmic Boy a glare worthy of the Batman. Cos just stood there, gaping at the little boy. He and Brainy were little devils, even if they were adorable ones at that. First the endless copy game, and now Lyle was trying to get him in trouble.

Imra was about to say something to Cos, but he stared before she could.

"I know, I know. I'm going." He said, walking off in one direction to find a gift for Brainy. Lyle waved bye to him in the most innocent way possible.

Saturn Girl looked at Lyle. "Sweetie, I'm going to talk to Cos later and find out what happened, but if you were climbing all over the shelves, that is against the rules." She said.

Lyle's jaw dropped.

"I'm a telepath, remember?" Saturn Girl said playfully.

"Oh." Lyle said, blushing.

Saturn Girl walked into an aisle with educational toys in it. She found a holovid-reader and a couple of the downloadable book chips and thought that it was a good idea for him to have something to read. She hadn't noticed Lyle run down the aisle and grab a bunch of the downloadable comics until he dropped them all in the cart with an exaggerated grunt.

"Lyle…" She said, a warning tone in her voice.

"But it's Batman _and_ Superman!" He argued.

Saturn Girl looked down at all the ones he had grabbed. There had to be at least thirty. "You can choose three." She said.

"Why not four since Brainy is gonna be four?" Lyle asked innocently.

Saturn Girl smiled at Lyle. "Alright. Four, but no more."

"Yay!" Lyle cheered as he chose the four.

The two walked off to meet Cosmic Boy at the checkout. When they found him he was holding a snow globe of New Metropolis. Saturn Girl raised an eyebrow at him.

"What?!" Cos asked defensively. "I liked snow globes as a kid!" He said.

Lyle came up and grabbed the snow globe, shaking it vigorously. When he stopped, the little white flakes were swirling around the miniature skyscrapers.

"Look! It's snowing!" Lyle said happily.

"See?" Cos said triumphantly.

Saturn Girl suppressed a giggle and nodded.

Once they had checked out they headed back to Legion HQ for lunch, Lyle babbling the whole way. Finally, he asked the dreaded question, causing Saturn Girl and Cosmic Boy to exchange horrified looks.

"Can we go back to the store sometime?"

* * *

**Reviews and ideas are appreciated! Next chapter I bring back the Cosmic Brownie. You're welcome :) Also, more line breaks! Yay!**


	14. Chapter 14: Cosmic Boy is a Brownie

**A/N: Here's the next chapter! This will probably be the last thing I post before school starts, sorry. Also, I just realized that if you don't read LOSH comics you probably don't know who Lyle is. Lyle Norg, AKA Invisible Kid, is another scientist in the Legion. In the comics he and Brainy don't exactly get along all of the time, but it's more fun to write if they're friends. I don't know much else about him :)****. Also, I have another fic in the works that I'm thinking of posting around Thanksgiving (Mid-November for those who aren't American) or Christmas, maybe sooner. Be on the lookout for it!**

**Disclaimer: I still do not own LOSH. Alariah is still mine and always will be ;)**

* * *

Alariah and Timberwolf made spaghetti for lunch. Brainy was still trying to figure out how to eat the strange noodles when Saturn Girl, Cosmic Boy, and Lyle returned.

"Mommy!" He cheered. "How do I eat this?" He asked almost immediately after.

Saturn Girl smiled and explained how to twirl the noodles around a fork. Lyle plopped down next to Brainy and began eating very sloppily by shoving the noodles into his mouth, but at least he was using a fork.

"You're supposed to twirl it on your fork." Brainy said.

"So? Shoving it in my mouth is more fun." Lyle replied through a mouthful.

Brainy tried shoving the spaghetti into his mouth and smiled. "This is more fun!" He said once he had swallowed.

The boys continued to eat messily as the Legionnaires snuck into the meeting room to wrap their gifts. Lightning Dad didn't have a gift to wrap, so he stayed out with Brainy and Lyle.

"Are you excited for your birthday, Brainy?" Lightning Dad asked.

Brainy just shrugged. He had never had a big celebration for his birthday before so he didn't know why everyone was making such a big deal about it.

"What do you mean?" Lightning Dad asked.

"It's just another day. Sometimes I'd get to work on one of my own projects or go outside, but it's nothing special." Brainy said sadly.

"Well!" Lightning Dad began. "Here on Earth, birthdays are a big deal! There's presents, and cake, and music, and your family just celebrates you being you! It's a big party!" He finished.

Brainy looked at Lightning Dad, wide eyed. "Really? I get to have a party just because I'm me?" He asked.

"Yeah!" Lightning Dad replied. "You're gonna be a whole year older, that's pretty important."

By now the other Legionnaires had finished wrapping their gifts and were filing back into the room.

"Kell! Kell! Kell! I get to have a party because I'm me!" Brainy yelled happily to the first person he spotted. Obviously, that happened to be Kell.

"So Lightning Dad explained birthdays to you, huh?" Kell asked. By now every Legionnaire had adopted that nickname for Garth.

Brainy nodded excitedly. Then his happy look changed to one of concern. "Is everyone gonna be there, like Mommy and Lightning Dad and Cosmic Brownie and Puppy and Al and-" Brainy was cut off.

"Cosmic what?!" Cosmic Boy asked.

"Cosmic Brownie!" Brainy and Lyle chirped happily.

"Yeah, we're all going to be there." Lightning Dad reassured Brainy.

"Good. I wanna have my first party with my family." Brainy said seriously.

All the girls had to resist the urge to say "Awwwwww!" Brainy had just called them his family! They never thought that they'd hear the Coluan say something like that. Even if it was how he felt they never dreamed he'd voice it.

Brainy thought back to something Lightning Dad had said.

"What are presents?" Brainy asked curiously.

All the Legionnaires froze and stared at Brainy, save Cosmic Boy. He was still trying to come to terms with his new nickname.

Even though Brainy had become more comfortable with the Legionnaires he was still afraid of angering them or disappointing them. He backed away and began shaking.

Lightning Dad placed a hand on Brainy's shoulder, causing him to jump. "What's wrong?" Lightning Dad asked quietly, so not to startle the child.

"E-everyone was looking at me like I did something wrong. I thought you were mad at me." The boy sniffed.

"Oh, Brainy, we're not mad and you did nothing wrong. We were just surprised that you don't know what a present is." Lightning Dad assured him.

"W-what is a present?" Brainy restated his question hesitantly.

Lyle decided he should explain. "Presents are free stuff people give you on your birthday and other holidays. They're really cool!" He said.

"Do you get presents?" Brainy asked Lyle.

Lyle's face fell. "No, Mommy says that only you get stuff because it's your first time having a good birthday." Lyle explained.

"But I want you to get stuff too!" Brainy protested.

"You can share with Lyle." Saturn Girl suggested.

Brainy thought it over for a minute, then nodded in confirmation.

"Whoo hoo!" Lyle cheered.

"Wait, what's my name again?" Cosmic Boy asked, still shocked at what the boys had called him.

"Your name is Cosmic Brownie. Life will go on now, get over it." Lyle said with all seriousness.

Cos just stood there, gaping like a fish out of water.

"I think we broke him." Brainy said to Lyle. He sounded more amused than concerned.

"Brownie Boy just needs some time to process what you said." Kell said, trying to keep his stoic demeanor. He managed for about ten seconds, then he broke down laughing.

"How about we go make a cake?" Timberwolf suggested. "Brainy can pick the flavor and you both can help make it." He added.

"Yay! I want chocolate!" Brainy cheered.

"You don't even know if that's a cake flavor!" Timberwolf said, amused.

"Well, I've deduced that if it's a pancake flavor, then it must also be a cake flavor." Brainy said seriously.

"Okay, okay, you're right, it's a cake flavor." Timberwolf said, laughing.

"I told you so." Brainy said triumphantly.

The boys followed Timberwolf into the kitchen to begin making the batter.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, the boys were happily licking the bowls, chocolate batter smeared all over their little faces.

Saturn Girl walked into the kitchen and smiled. Timberwolf seemed happy to finally have the cake made, and the boys had begun a small batter fight, getting chocolate all over each other. She sighed, realizing that she was probably going to be the one to get those stains out, seeing that Trips and Phantom Girl wouldn't do laundry, most of the boys claimed they were too manly for laundry, and Al had placed a restraining order in the washing machine, claiming that it had attacked him last time he did laundry. Still, it was worth it if it made the little ones so happy.

"Boys, stop. You'll get yourselves and my kitchen all messy." Timberwolf said, annoyed.

"Are they done yet?" Brainy asked, ignoring Timberwolf's earlier statement as he threw more batter at Lyle.

"The cake isn't but the brownies will be done in a few minutes." Timberwolf replied.

"Brownies?" Saturn Girl asked curiously.

"Yeah! I wanted to see what brownies are since Cosmo seemed so offended by being called one." Brainy explained.

Saturn Girl sighed. Nicknames for Cosmic Boy were so easy to come up with. She would bet her flight ring that the boys had about a dozen more.

Brainy threw more batter at Lyle.

"AHWM!" Lyle yelled, making an exaggerated eating sound as all the batter landed in his mouth. **(A/N: Try making that noise. It's fun XD)**

"Ten!" Brainy yelled, scoring the intensity of the noise. Both boys began clapping and laughing.

"Seriously, stop. You're getting everything all messy." Timberwolf scolded.

In response to that the boys threw spoonfuls of batter onto Timberwolf's fur.

Timberwolf sighed and looked at Saturn Girl. "Does it ever end?" He asked her.

"I'm afraid not." She replied, giggling.

Suddenly, the oven dinged.

"BROWNIES!" Brainy and Lyle cheered, completely forgetting their assault on Timberwolf's fur.

Timberwolf brought out the brownies and put them on a cooling rack.

Brainy and Lyle began to reach for them, but Timberwolf was once again playing bad cop.

"Uh-uh-uh! They're still really hot! You can't have any until they cool down so you won't get burned." He said urgently.

The boys pouted but nodded.

Once the brownies had cooled down the boys happily munched on the sweet treats. A few other Legionnaires were smart enough to follow their noses and they found themselves with a few brownies as well. The brownies were almost gone when Brainy whispered something to Lyle, who nodded in reply.

Brainy stood on his chair. "We need the last two brownies to go to our cause!" He announced.

"Would that cause happen to be your stomach?" Lightning Dad asked.

"No." Brainy and Lyle said together.

Lightning Dad looked at Saturn Girl. She nodded to him, signaling that she didn't sense that they were lying.

"Okay, you can have them." Lightning Dad decided.

The boys snickered and looked at each other with mischievous smirks. They put the two brownies on a plate and ran down the hall, yelling a quick thanks, followed by hysterical laughter.

* * *

Cosmic Boy sat in his office, trying to piece together his ruined ego. He was now a brownie.

He sighed and got up. It was getting late and he should probably get ready for bed. He was grateful that he didn't have the night shift tonight.

Cos walked into his room, only to stop immediately upon entering. On his nightstand was a plate of brownies with a note that said 'For your enjoyment'.

For a moment he was dumbstruck, trying to figure out who put them there, then he looked at the handwriting. It was a little bit sloppier, but he had seen the older Brainy's notes. That was his three-year-old handwriting. It looked somewhat similar to Cosmic Boy's own handwriting when he was eight. He sighed. The boys had way too much fun here.

Cos shrugged and sat down in his bed, beginning to eat the brownies. They were pretty good. He had just finished the first one when he heard a young voice in the hallway.

"See, I told you he'd do it!" Brainy yelled as he and Lyle collapsed into laughter.

Cos rolled his eyes. Those boys were something else.

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**Is Timberwolf's name one or two words? I've seen it done both ways. Please Review!**


	15. Chapter 15: Bath Time

**A/N: So I know that it's been forever since I've posted for this story, but I'm sorta running out of ideas. Anything you people could suggest would be greatly appreciated. Thanks to anyone who is still reading this, it means a lot. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own LoSH.**

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"Okay boys! Bedtime!" Lightning Dad yelled after he heard the results of their little prank on the Fearless Leader.

"Awwww!" They whined. They wanted to play more.

"Hey, hey, let's not have any of that." Lightning Dad began. "Tomorrow is Brainy's birthday. We have to get some sleep so we can party like animals tomorrow." He said.

"How do animals party?" Brainy asked.

Lightning Dad thought about how to explain the expression for a moment before giving up.

"Never mind." He said.

"No no no! They all get together in the forest and the frogs drop some serious beats!" Lyle said. Lightning Dad looked at him for a second before shaking his head and smiling.

"Well, now we know how animals party. It's still bedtime, though." Lightning Dad said, trying to hide his laughter. "C'mon, time for baths." He announced.

The boys shared a look of horror and attempted to run off, however the Legionnaires had been ready for this. Superman swooped down with his super speed and grabbed the boys.

"Gotcha!" He yelled.

Always wanting attention, Lyle batted his eyelashes and sang "My hero!"

Brainy laughed hysterically at the horrible impression of Lois Lane his friend was doing.

"Higher! Higher!" Brainy ordered the Man of Steel.

Blushing from embarrassment, Superman rolled his eyes. "Go take your baths boys." He said with a smile.

"Okay…" They sighed.

"Thank you." Superman said, setting them down by Lightning Dad.

"Last one there is a failed experiment!" Lyle yelled, taking off down the hallway.

"No fair! No fair!" Brainy yelled as he followed.

Lightning Dad smiled and shook his head.

"Looks like you're the failed experiment!" Superman joked.

"No, Clarkie, you are! You're gonna help me!" Lightning Dad said as he took off down the hall.

"Hey!" Superman yelled, attempting to catch up to the other teen. When he reached the bathroom, there was already water everywhere.

"Don't just stand there! Gimme a hand!" Lightning Dad yelled.

"SUPERMAN'S A FAILED EXPERIMENT!" The boys yelled, and then they collapsed into giggles.

Superman sighed. This was gonna take awhile.

* * *

After a half hour in the tub, ten minutes to get into pajamas, and three stories, the boys finally went to sleep. Lightning Dad sighed. He needed some sleep too.

Superman walked into the lounge and flopped down onto the couch.

"I hope I wasn't that bad with baths when I was three." He said, laughing.

"Hah! Yeah, I have no idea how my parents were able to do it!" Lightning Dad agreed.

Saturn girl walked in. "Oh, he got you to help this time?" She asked Superman.

"Yeah." He replied, too tired to think of much else.

Saturn Girl smiled and laughed. "You have no idea what the first night was like! And then it was only Brainy!" She smiled and shook her head.

Lightning Dad swung around to face her. On his face was a look of almost pure horror.

"Do _not_ go there!" He demanded.

Saturn Girl smiled. "I wasn't going to. However, I am going to tell you to hit the hay. You look exhausted." She put her hands on her hips in a fake attempt to sound authoritative.

"Yes ma'am!" Lightning Dad replied jokingly as he headed towards his room.

* * *

After a nice hot shower Garth was in his pajamas and getting into bed. He had just turned out the lights when he heard his door swoosh open a little.

"Daddy…?" A small voice said uncertainly.

And so began the longest night the Legion would ever know.

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**A/N: Please remember to review with some ideas for me! I would really appreciate it! **


	16. Chapter 16: T'was the Night Before

"Daddy…?" A small voice asked uncertainly.

Lightning Dad sighed. The day wasn't over yet.

"Are you alright Brainy?" He asked.

Brainy shook his head frantically and ran into the room, stopping when he reached the bed. He held his arms up, signaling that he wanted to be held. Garth lifted him off of the floor and onto his lap almost effortlessly.

"I had a dream that bad people were trying to get me." Brainy mumbled, hugging tightly to Lightning Dad.

"Really? Well it's good it was only a dream, because Mommy and I would've kicked their butts and put them in time out!" Lightning Dad reassured Brainy.

Brainy giggled but did not loosen his hold on Lightning Dad's torso.

Garth sighed. "Do you want to sleep in here?" He asked. Brainy nodded.

"That's what I though." Garth said, more to himself than Brainy.

"Only for a little bit! I promise!" Brainy cried upon hearing the displeased tone in Lightning Dad's voice.

Garth smiled. "You can stay the whole night if you need to." He promised.

Brainy relaxed upon hearing this and loosened his hold on Lightning Dad ever so slightly. He yawned and rested his head on Garth's shoulder.

"G'night daddy." Brainy mumbled.

"Goodnight Brainy." Lightning Dad replied, hugging the small Coluan tight.

"Mommy always sad she loves me when she tucks me in. What does that mean?" Brainy asked sleepily.

Garth was somewhat taken back by this question. He hadn't expected the three (soon to be four) year old to ask such complicated questions, but he really shouldn't have been surprised. It was Brainy, after all.

"Love is an emotion so strong that you would do anything for those you care about." Garth said, doing his best to explain. "When Mommy says she loves you she means that she cares about you a lot and wants you to be happy. She doesn't want anything bad to happen to you." He concluded.

"Oh." Brainy yawned. "Then I love Mommy too. I also love you and Phantom Girl and Puppy and Al and Bouncy and Triplicate Girl and-" Brainy began listing the Legionnaires he cared for before Lightning Dad gently placed a finger to his lips.

"We can list everyone's name tomorrow." Garth suggested gently. "For now let's try and get some sleep, okay?" He asked.

"Okay…" Brainy agreed.

The two lied down on Garth's bed.

"Goodnight daddy…" Brainy said for a second time.

Garth smiled. "Goodnight, sleep tight. Tomorrow you'll be a whole year older." He whispered as Brainy drifted off to sleep.

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**A/N: Hey guys! So I know it's been forever since I've updated this story, I've had the worst case of writers block. I've also taken more to writing in first person, whereas this story is meant to be in third person. For those of you who don't know I am rewriting Galactic Hope, so that won't see any updates for a while. I'm sorry the chapter is so short, I felt like I needed to get something out and I had this, so yeah. Hope you enjoyed!**


	17. Bit of a Filler

**Hey Everyone! Sorry updates have been so inconsistent. I promise I'm working on the next chapter (inspiration hit me in the middle of Government class last week) but since I din't currently have the chapter for all y'alls, I figured I could give you this little bit I had scrapped a while back. It's the f****irst time they try to give him a bath :3**

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"NO! I don't wanna!" Brainy screamed as he batted away Lightning Lad's hands.

"Woah! Hey little guy, calm down! It's just a bath! You need to have one so you can be all clean before you go to bed!" Garth explained franticly.

"No! No bath!" Brainy cried, pushing Garth away for what must have been the thousandth time.

"Oh my gosh… why won't he just quiet down and get in the tub?" Kell sighed, exasperated. He had been in the middle of a nap and was not happy to interrupted by the cries of the small Coluan.

"This isn't easy, you know! Why don't you try talking him into it?!" Garth retorted.

"Fine. Challenge accepted." Kell replied snarkily.

Lightning Lad stepped away from the desk that Brainy had been hiding under so he was in full view of Kell. He had managed to get the boy's shirt and socks off before Brainy had figured out that they were trying to get him into the bath and went into full-on panic mode.

Kell knelt down in front of Brainy. "Why don't you wanna get in the bath? It's not dangerous or anything!" He exclaimed.

"Yes it is! What if I hit my head and then I black out and I go underwater and drown? What if the water is too hot? What if-?" Brainy rambled.

"Hey!" Kell exclaimed, startling the small boy. "Those are some pretty irrational fears there, kiddo." Kell said, raising an eyebrow.

"But what if I get soap in my eyes?!" Brainy exclaimed.

Kell laughed and Lightning Lad sighed.

"I'm sure you'll be just fine." Garth reassured him.

It was only fifteen minutes later when there was splashing, water all over the bathroom floor, and a very wet and unhappy Lightning Lad carrying a giggling Brainy wrapped in a towel back to his bedroom.

The only answer to the puzzled looks of the legionnaires was the small Coluan's victory cry of "I beat you at battleships!" And Garth's protest of "that's _not_ how you're supposed to play!"

All legionnaires will deny ever laughing at this. However, they all know that that's a dirty lie!

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**yay hope you enjoyed. It wasn't proofread but oh well. **

**I am Rewriting Galactic Hope, so be on the lookout for that! **

**Reviews are appreciated :) If anyone is interested in me doing something where I answer questions asked in reviews at the end of chapters let me know and I may be able to make that happen.**


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